My Home..... or Ours?

"DUN WAN LA", my classmate replied after I requested for my textbook to be returned. To us Singaporeans 'Singlish' seems normal for us; we tend to use it in our daily conversation. Except for the fact that my classmate is an Australian.



We Singaporeans live in a multicultural society. One of the perks living here is the huge variety of food available. So i believe most of us (being the food lover that we are) living here would have been to Chomp Chomp Food Centre at Serangoon Gardens. Local delights such as barbequed stingray, Hokkien noodles, steamed cockles would whet any palate, whether you are a food connoisseur or not. And how about washing down all those sinful calories (oh how could you resist?) with a monster jug of sugarcane juice? Lime please, thank you very much!



If local foodfare at Chomp Chomp is not to your liking, why not head further down, where authentic Hainanese chicken rice is served? Or beside the latter, if you crave a locally-invented McSpicy burger, all-American Macdonald's awaits! More American? Within a walking distance, there is also a Starbucks cafe, an American-like eatery that is Cafe Cartel, or Cold Storage ( widely perceived to cater especially for the rich and/or expatriates, or is it?), if you feel like cooking up a storm! Finally at the center of Serangoon Gardens there is an open restaurant serving Indian favorites such as Mee Goreng and Roti Prata. Portugese egg tarts? Ice-cream waffles? There. Serangoon Gardens has it. The food, that is.



Ah. Serangoon Gardens. Not just a food haven, but to many, it is a place called home. A housing estate that is mostly private. a place where not only food is widely available, there is a country club, a handful of banks, and entertainment such as pubs and nightclubs. A second Holland Village, as most would associate with.



The situation, it seems, is that recently the government has come up with plans to house the growing number of foreign workers at Serangoon Gardens, as it is noted for it's convenience and accessibility. Most of the foreign workers currently live in dorms that are close to the edges of the island, one example of a dorm being near a collage of cemeteries at far-flung Chua Chu Kang.

As such, the proximity to convenience stores to buy neccesities for these workers are largely limited.



Thus there is a clarion call for the government to review the plans, as the residents of Serangoon Gardens voiced concerns over security, transport and social issues. The foreign workers in Singapore currently numbers around 70,000.



Now the talking point: "what is your opinion on the possibilty of foreign workers living in there?"
Comment!

This particular debate has been raging over the past week, as experts, residents living at Serangoon Gardens or those living near foreign workers' dorms and the workers alike gave their opinions, albeit with great hullabaloo.



As mentioned earlier, Singapore is a multicultural society. It is inevitable we would foreign workers from day to day. We see them taking buses and trains to work. We see them pruning our beautiful trees, grasses and shrubs. We see them cleaning the streets, painting houses, putting on their yellow helmets for work at the construction site.



We see them washing the blocks at our estate.



We see them standing on the tail of waste trucks.



We see them fixing the lights along our expressways.



we see them putting on their yellow helmets for yet another day at the construction site...



But... have we ever seen their homes? Have we ever conversed with them, other than "excuse me" or "sorry, is that seat available"? Have you ever wondered/questioned why they talk so loudly on the handphone when the receiver is right beside their mouth, and they are disturbing your short naps on the bus? Or has the sound of the drill at the construction site interfered with your studying or your favorite television episode?
Comment!



Personally I feel that in this situation we have perceived foreign workers to be construction workers, rubbish collectors, road sweepers, just to name a few. "What you see is what you get" is the phrase that I feel people would conceptualise immediately upon seeing a road sweeper. "oh he smells bad, i need to get my child away from him."

I feel that there is a mix of a social constructionist perspective and a pragmatic perspective here.

We have the personal bias that these foreign workers have bad habits, they dirty our environment, and thus we should not be talking to them. Ironically, these workers are the ones who clean it!

Whereas we can't say the same for another group of foreign workers. They are our professionals; lawyers, doctors, lecturers, executives, etc, and we have the thinking that these are the sort of people that benefits the society, that we should be communicating with them for various benefits. Strangely, we welcome these high earners. And a number of them live in places like Serangoon Gardens.

Well, who is the one complaining then? Foreigners against foreigners?

Whose side are you on?

Comment!